The looting continues

Tax havens and corruption

Datos Bibliográficos

ID15539089
AutoresJohn Christensen (0000-0003-1875-396X, Ministry of Justice, autor de correspondencia)
EditoresEd Brown
Año2011
Volumen7
Número2
Páginas177-196
Fecha de publicación2011-05-10
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaCritical Perspectives on International Business (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 1742-2043 • E-ISSN: 1758-6062
EditorialEmerald Publishing Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1108/17422041111128249
OpenAlexW2000421359
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas21
Referencias citadas7

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to consider the activities of tax havens in the global financial markets and explore their role in providing a supply‐side stimulant for corrupt practices. It aims to argue that the corruption debate needs to shift to a second phase in which the role of tax havens as supply‐side stimulants features more prominently. Design/methodology/approach Based on the author's original research into the practices and activities of tax havens, the paper explores the operational features of tax havens, with particular focus on their role in providing opaque and complex offshore structures through which illicit financial flows can be routed to disguise their origins, method of transfer and true beneficial ownership. The paper explores how bankers, lawyers and accountants create complex and opaque offshore structures to facilitate economic crime and impede investigation. Findings Despite severe limitations imposed by the absence of rigorously researched statistical data on capital flows into and out of tax havens, the paper argues that the available data support the view that tax havens have become prominent features of the globalised capital markets, and their activities create a criminogenic environment in which illicit financial flows are easily disguised and hidden amongst legitimate commercial transactions. The paper notes that effective remedies are available to reduce financial market opacity, but political will is lacking to take effective action. Originality/value This paper tackles a new and under‐researched subject. Drawing on the author's experiences of working on a prominent tax haven for a total of 14 years, the paper brings attention to the impact of tax havens on international development

Business · Capital (architecture · Double taxation · Economics · International taxation · Language change · Law and economics · Public economics · Tax avoidance · Tax haven · Tax reform · Global Financial Crisis and Policies · Islamic Finance and Banking Studies · Taxation and Compliance Studies